Man pleads guilty in drug overdose death

Robert J. Kirchner pleaded guilty to the trafficking charge in exchange for a six-year sentence and a prosecution agreement to drop the homicide and other charges. The crime is punishable by between six and 14 years in prison.

The state also agreed to drop a driving under the influence charge and other minor charges. Kirchner will have to serve at least 75 percent of the six-year sentence.

Assistant State’s Attorney John Fischer said the evidence at trial would have shown that Kirchner bought heroin in St. Louis and gave it to Tony Sellers. Sellers’ body was found in the yard of Kirchner’s home in June 2012.

Kirchner, 42, was charged March 14, 2013. He was accused to delivering less that a gram of heroin to Sellers. The homicide charge claims Sellers injected the drug and died.

Authorities said there was some question as to where the exchange of heroin occurred. If it occurred in Missouri, Kirchner could not be found guilty under Illinois law.

Kirchner was also charged with unlawful delivery of a controlled substance, unlawful possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and a count of unlawful possession of a controlled substance. He faced concealment charges along with three other people — his wife, Vindi Kirchner, 41, Janet Denson, 48 and Scott Bourbon, 48 — of concealment of a homicide death, for allegedly moving Sellers’ body. Their cases are pending.

He was previously convicted of misdemeanor unlawful possession of a firearm, for which he was sentenced to a fine and cost, and a 2002 case of possession of a controlled substance for which he was sentenced to two years probation.